TIME MANAGEMENT

In an exam, effective time management is vital. If you run out of time, then some questions (or parts) will be left unfinished and marks lost.

The key to good time management is to divide the time allowed between the marks available. For example, in a three-hour exam allow 1.8 minutes per mark, and in a two-hour exam allow 1.33 minutes per mark. This allocation gives a rough guide as to how long to spend on a question or part. Candidates often waste time by:

working on a requirement for longer than necessary because they wish to correct a mistake and amend all related follow?on figures

feeling they have so much to say about a certain requirement that they ‘dump’ all their knowledge in the Candidate Answer Booklet

persevering for too long with a question even though they are struggling.

Candidates can avoid these problems as follows:

If you discover an error in a calculation or on a financial statement, only correct the initial error. Don’t waste time making all the follow?through corrections. By leaving the original error uncorrected, the only mark(s) lost are those associated with that particular entry or calculation, as ACCA uses a ‘method’ or ‘own figure’ marking policy. If the method adopted is correct, credit will always be given despite incorrect numbers being used.

Only make as many points as there are marks available. For example, if five marks are available for discussing a theory, only make five (or possibly six) separate points. If the total mark available is a round number, then the examiner usually awards one mark per relevant point made. So, in this situation, even making 10 relevant points will earn no more than the maximum five marks available, and so writing those additional points wastes time.

If you are struggling to get to grips with a requirement, move on to the next requirement, or even question, leaving enough blank pages in your Candidate Answer Booklet to complete it later.